Yogurt Pie

Yogurt Pie
An easy, light dessert that is great for summer! Recommended flavors are Lemon, Lime, Strawberry, and Blueberry.

Ingredients:
1 3 oz. package flavored Jello
1/4 cup boiling water
1 small container yogurt (matching with the Jello flavor)
8 oz. frozen whipped topping, such as Cool Whip
1 9-inch graham cracker pie crust


Directions

1. In a large bowl, add boiling water to Jello; stir 2 minutes to completely dissolve. 
2. Whisk in yogurt. 
3. Fold in whipped topping. 
4. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust. 
5. Refrigerate, covered, until set, about 2 hours.

Lasagna

Lasagna

(From Ginny)
These are the proportions I've come up with based on my memories of making lasagna growing up, and with the help of the recipe on the Barilla Oven-Ready Lasagna box. I love using the Oven-Ready Lasagna - it's super easy and it bakes really well. I recommend assembling everything at least an hour or two before baking so it has time to sit and soak in the juices.
p.s. Barilla says this makes 5 servings but you could easily serve 10+ people with this, especially if you have garlic bread and some sort of veggies to go with it!

1 box Barilla Oven-Ready Lasagna
2-3 24-oz jars Marinara/Spaghetti sauce (we grew up with Ragu, but I prefer Newman's now)
1 pound ground beef
1 pound sausage, ground or sliced
1 15-oz container ricotta cheese
1 c. (8 oz) small curd cottage cheese
2 eggs
4 c. (1 lb) mozzarella cheese, shredded
6 oz shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees
2. In a large skillet, brown beef and sausage until cooked through
3. In a bowl combine ricotta, cottage cheese, eggs, 2 cups mozzarella, and 1/2 cup Parmesan; stir well
4. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray
5. For the bottom layer, pour one cup of sauce and spread evenly
6. Top with 3 sheets of Oven-Ready Lasagna. The sheets will expand while baking to the ends of the dish.
7. Pour about 1 1/2 cup sauce and 3/4 cup of the cheese mixture on the first layer, top with 1/4 cup of the mozzarella, a bit of Parmesan, and 2/3 cup of the cooked meat.
8. Continue for 3 more layers
9. For the final layer, top with 3 sheets of Oven-Ready Lasagna, pour the remaining sauce, top with remaining cheese mixture, mozzarella, and any remaining Parmesan. 
10. Cover with foil and place in pre-heated oven, bake for 30 minutes, or until it starts to get bubbly. If you have a food thermometer, the center of the lasagna should be cooked to about 165 degrees.
11. Once baked, remove foil and bake an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese is brown and starting to bubble (it could start to bubble over a bit around the edges here, so put a pan underneath to catch the drips or at least turn your stove fan on).
12. Let rest about 15 minutes before cutting.

What other variations do you like for your lasagna?

Good Eats Roast Turkey

Good Eats Roast Turkey

"We've been using this recipe for our turkeys for several years now, except we don't roast it, still cook it in the Oven Bags!" -Christy

For the brine:

1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

1 cup kosher salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1 gallon vegetable stock

1 tablespoon black peppercorns

1 1/2 teaspoons allspice berries

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped candied ginger

1 gallon heavily iced water

Begin thawing the turkey in the refrigerator or in a cooler kept at 38 degrees F.

Combine the vegetable stock, salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, allspice berries, and candied ginger in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to dissolve solids and bring to a boil. Then remove the brine from the heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate.

Early on the day or the night before you'd like to eat:

Combine the brine, water and ice in the 5-gallon bucket. Place the thawed turkey (with innards removed) breast side down in brine. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure it is fully immersed, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area for 8 to 16 hours, turning the bird once half way through brining.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Remove the bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard the brine.

Place the bird on roasting rack inside a half sheet pan and pat dry with paper towels.

For the aromatics:

1 red apple, sliced

1/2 onion, sliced

1 cinnamon stick

1 cup water

4 sprigs rosemary

6 leaves sage

Canola oil

Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and 1 cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Add steeped aromatics to the turkey's cavity along with the rosemary and sage. Tuck the wings underneath the bird and coat the skin liberally with canola oil.

Roast the turkey on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes. Insert a probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Set the thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let the turkey rest, loosely covered with foil or a large mixing bowl for 15 minutes before carving.

Recipe from Christy

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/good-eats-roast-turkey-recipe.html

Christy's Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin Pie

"This is my favorite pumpkin pie recipe, will never make it without cream cheese again!"

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed

1 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten

1 cup half-and-half

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional

1 piece pre-made pie dough

Whipped cream, for topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.

For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.

Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream.

Recipe from Christy 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/pumpkin-pie-recipe.html

Thanksgiving holiday food

I seem to have misplaced my Thanksgiving notebook and am trying to recall all the things that we liked to include in the traditional Thanksgiving meal... what am I missing?

Main meal

• Turkey
• Gravy

Sides

• Stuffing
• Mashed Potatoes
• Sweet Potatoes
• Butternut Squash and Apples
• Cranberry Sauce
• Olives
• Pickles
• Deviled Eggs
• Grammie's Strawberry Jello (how could I forget this?!)

Vegetables

• Broccoli with Cheese Sauce
• Glazed carrots

Bread

• Rolls
• Hawaiian Sweet Rolls

Desserts

• Pumpkin Pie
• Mince Pie
• Chocolate Pie

What are some traditional foods that you have added to your Thanksgivings over the years?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Cornbread

Cornbread

This is from Martina McBride's cookbook, Around the Table.
This is half of her recipe, which fills a very large baking pan, 13x9. If you have that, just double it and plan on freezing some or feeding a crowd.


2 1/2 tbsp butter melted (plus 1 tbsp for greasing pan)
3/4 c buttermilk
3/4 c milk
2 eggs
1/3 c veg oil (I use olive)

1 1/2 c flour
1/2 c yellow cornmeal
1/3 c sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

2 oz diced green chile (can)
1 c shredded pepper jack cheese (plain jack OK too)

I use an oval 13 x 9 baking pan - greased with the extra butter

Combine first 5 ingredients, mix lightly.
Combine dry ingredients, stir just till mixed.
Add chiles and cheese.
Pour in pan, bake 350, 40 to 45 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

If you prefer a plainer cornbread, this recipe is from Jane, and also very good.

Golden Corn Bread (Yankee Style)

1 c flour
1/4 c sugar
4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1 c cornmeal
2 eggs
1 c milk
1/4 c oil

Combine dry
Whisk together eggs, milk and oil, add to dry.

Grease 9x9 pan. Bake 425, 20 - 25 minutes.

As you know, for me, "The code [recipe] is more what you'd call 'guidelines' than actual rules."

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

2 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1/2 cup sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz shredded Jack cheese
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
12 flour tortillas
1 1/2 cups salsa (or less, to taste)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix chicken, sour cream, cream of chicken soup, 1 cup of the cheese, and 3 Tbsp cilantro (if used).
Spoon 1/4 cup of chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up and place seam sides down in greased 13x9 baking dish. Top with salsa and remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.
Serve with additional sour cream, salsa, and cilantro (if desired).

Recipe from Grammie Cressy

**This is Grampa's favorite meal!**

Cracker Jack Popcorn

Cracker Jack Popcorn

** Best served with fireworks! **

1/2 cup Honey
1/4 cup Butter
3 qt. (12 cups) popped Popcorn
Peanuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Melt honey and butter together. Mix with popcorn and peanuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes or until it begins to get crispy. Cool.

Jo and John's Pumpkin Cookies

Jo and John's Pumpkin Cookies



2 3/4 cup Flour
1 1/3 cup Oats
1 tsp Baking Soda
2 1/2 tsp Cinnamon*
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Nutmeg*
1 tsp Ginger*
1 tsp Cloves*
1 c. Butter, softened
1 c. Brown Sugar
1 c. Sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp Vanilla
1 c. Pumpkin puree
Optional: 1 c. m&ms, Chocolate Chips, Peanut Butter Chips, Raisins, etc.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. In separate bowl, beat together butter, brown sugar, sugar, egg, and vanilla until fluffy. Add to dry mixture alternately with pumpkin. Fold in remaining ingredients. Drop on lightly greased cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes.

* You could substitute 2 Tbsp Pumpkin Spice for these spices (see http://vannessrecipes.blogspot.com/2016/10/making-your-own-pumpkin-spice-blend.html )

Chinese Noodles Chocolate Candy

Chinese Noodles Chocolate Candy

 

4 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
4 cups Butterscotch Chips
2 8.5-oz cans of Chinese Noodles (Chow Mein)
1 jar or can of Cocktail Peanuts (optional)

Melt chips in pan until melted to a smooth paste, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add noodles and nuts. Drop by spoonfuls on greased trays (or waxed paper) or spread in buttered dish. Chill.

Notes:
* The chips can be melted in double boiler fashion, with a bowl set on top of a pan with boiling water. It is very easy to burn the chips if you melt them in a pan directly on the stove. They can also be melted in the microwave.
* It can be really difficult to cut the candy into pieces when it's spread in a buttered dish. It's worth the extra effort to drop by spoonfuls.

Cherry Glaze Dessert

Cherry Glaze Dessert



Graham Crackers, 20 or so
1 cube (1/2 cup) Butter, melted
1/2 cup Sugar

1 large Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 pint Heavy Whipping Cream
1 cup sifted Powdered Sugar
2 cans Comstock Original Country Cherry ready pie filling

Preheat oven to 200 degrees

Crush crackers* with rolling pin in plastic bag. Combine with butter and sugar; spread in bottom of 9x12 inch Pyrex pan. Bake at 200 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool.

Beat the Cream Cheese. Add powdered sugar; mix. Whip heavy whipping cream and fold into the cream cheese mixture. Pour over the graham cracker crust. Spread cherry pie filling on top. Chill overnight, or until set.

From Grammie Cressy

* see Tips and Tricks for Crushing Cookies for helpful suggestions

Oreo Ice Cream Cake

Oreo Ice Cream Cake




Large package Oreo Cookies
1/2 gallon Vanilla Ice Cream (or Cookies n' Cream)
16 oz. Cool Whip

Allow ice cream and cool whip to sit out for a bit (to soften). Crush oreos for crust*. Spread cookies in the bottom of a 9x13 inch pan.
Mix ice cream and cool whip. Spread ice cream mixture over crust and sprinkle with additional Oreos, either crushed or pieces.
Freeze to set.


* For tips on crushing cookies, see Tips and Tricks for Crushing Cookies

From Grammie Cressy

Tips & Tricks for Crushing Cookies

Tips & Tricks for Crushing Cookies

Tons of recipes call for crushed cookies and it’s not often that you find packages of cookie crumbs or crushed cookies lining your grocery store aisles. So, what do you do? That’s easy. Simply buy a package of the cookies that are needed to make the recipe and get to work crushing them yourself. It’s a fun task that’s easy to do. Plus, your kids will have so much fun crushing the cookies.

Many of you have food processors that have the ability to crush cookies into different size pieces. However, if you don’t have a food processors, there’s no need to fret. As long as you have a rolling pin or hammer and a freezer bag, you’ll be well on your way to having cups full of crushed cookies to add to your recipes.

How To Crush Cookies

1. Pour the desired amount of cookies into a freezer bag with a zip-top closure. Remove the air from the bag and securely seal.
2. Place the filled bag on a flat surface and flatten the bag to create a single layer of cookies.
3. Place a dish towel over the bag. This will help to lessen the chances of the bag tearing or ripping when crushing.
4. Take a rolling pin and roll over the bag of cookies. Continue rolling over the bag until you have reached the desired size pieces of cookie crumbs. If you don’t have a rolling pin, simply use a hammer but be sure to tap the bag gently until you have reached the desired size pieces of cookie crumbs.

Cookie crumbs come in handy for all sorts of desserts such as pie liners, dough add-ins, and even ice cream toppers. So, the next time a recipe calls for cookie crumbs, follow these steps and within minutes you’ll have tasty crumbs that will add a whole new dimension to your desserts.

(from http://www.howto-simplify.com/2011/04/tips-tricks-crushing-cookies.html )

Peanut Butter Balls

Peanut Butter Balls

1 1/2 c. Peanut Butter
3/4 c. Honey
1 1/2 c. dry Milk Powder
1 c. Oats

Optional: Raisins, Chocolate Chips, Nuts, Coconut

Mix all ingredients and roll into bite sized balls. Add optional ingredient(s). Refrigerate until firm.

Cranberry Orange Bread

Cranberry Orange Bread

2 cups Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1 c. Sugar
1 beaten Egg
1/2 c. Orange Juice
Grated rind of 1 Orange
2 Tbsp melted Butter
2 Tbsp Hot Water
1 c. raw whole Cranberries
1 c. chopped Walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Yield: 1 loaf

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. In a separate bowl beat together egg, orange juice, orange rind, butter, and hot water; add to the dry mixture. Blend well but do not beat. Fold in the cranberries and walnuts (if desired).

Pour mixture into greased loaf pan and bake at 325 degrees for 60 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean). Cool 15 minutes before removing from pan.

From Country magazine

The Ultimate Banana Bread

The Ultimate Banana Bread

1 1/2 cup Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Baking Powder
3-4 ripe Bananas, mashed
1/4 c. Butter, softened
1 c. Sugar
1 Egg
2 Tbsp Milk
1 tsp Vanilla
Pinch of Salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Yield: 1 loaf

Combine flour, baking soda and baking powder. In a separate bowl, beat remaining ingredients together until smooth; stir in flour mixture until well mixed. Pour into greased and floured 9-inch loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Creamy Sweet Potatoes

Creamy Sweet Potatoes

5 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cooked (canned sweet potatoes also works!)
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Miniature marshmallows (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large bowl, mash sweet potatoes. Add eggs, orange juice, butter, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg and salt; mix well. Transfer to a greased 3-quart baking dish (or 9x13 inch pan). Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until set. Top with marshmallows, if desired. Return to oven until they just begin to puff and melt, about 5-10 minutes.

Yield: 10-12 servings

From Taste of Home magazine

Butternut Squash with Apples

Butternut Squash with Apples

4-5 lbs Butternut Squash
4 Baking Apples
1/2 cup Butter, melted
1 cup Brown Sugar, packed
2 Tbsp flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp Cinnamon

Cut squash in half, remove seeds and fibers; pare; cut in 1/2" slices. Pare and core apples; cut in 1/2" slices. Combine melted butter, sugar, flour, salt and cinnamon. Layer one half of squash in bottom of crock pot; top with half of apple slices and half of sugar mixture. Repeat layers.

Cook time options:
* Auto 5 hours
* High 3-4 hours
* Low 6-7 hours

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

Broccoli with Cheese Sauce

2 16-oz pkgs frozen broccoli florets
6 tbsp butter
1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
Paprika

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Slightly cook broccoli and spread in buttered 9x12 pan. Heat butter and flour in pan. Once butter is melted, add the salt, pepper, and milk. Stir in cheddar cheese until melted. Pour sauce over the broccoli and sprinkle with paprika.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

From Grammie Cressy

Grammie's Strawberry Jello

Grammie's Strawberry Jello

3- 3oz packages strawberry jello
4 c. hot water
3 medium bananas, mashed (about 1 c.)
8oz can crushed pineapple in pineapple juice, undrained
16 oz package unsweetened frozen strawberries, thawed slightly and sliced
1 pint sour cream






Combine the jello and hot water, stirring until dissolved.

Add the mashed bananas, pineapple and strawberries to jello mixture.

Put half of jello mixture in 9x13 pan. Let it set (at least one hour) in refrigerator, leaving the other half out at room temperature. Once the first layer is set, spread the sour cream on top and pour remaining jello over the sour cream. Refrigerate until fully set (at least a couple of hours).

From Grammie Cressy